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Every episode
The Flower Podcast
30 episodes
Grit, Growth, and the Real Work Behind Flower Farming with Lyndsay Biehl-Mercer and Shannon Allen
Ep 304 · Dec 18, 2025 · 1 hr 15 min
Most of flower farming doesn't look like the photos—and that's exactly what this conversation is about. In this episode, I sit down with Lyndsay Biehl-Mercer of Wildroot Flower Co. and Shannon Allen of Bloom Hill Farm to talk about the real side of building a flower business: grit, focus, fear, finances, burnout, and learning as you go. We talk about why there's pressure to make everything look beautiful, how easy it is to work yourself into the ground, and why getting good at one thing early ma…
Using Beneficial Insects in Cut Flower Production with Erik van der Sluys
Ep 303 · Dec 4, 2025 · 1 hr 25 min
In this episode of The Flower Podcast, Scott welcomes Erik van der Sluys of Beneficial Insectary for a deep dive into natural pest control strategies tailored specifically for flower farmers. They explore practical, real-world approaches to managing common pests such as thrips, aphids, whiteflies, spider mites, and fungus gnats, and discuss how integrating beneficial insects into your growing system can dramatically improve plant health and resilience. Erik breaks down how growers can strengthen…
Rethinking Growth with Lindsey Mizock of Pompelmo Floral
Ep 302 · Nov 13, 2025 · 1 hr 12 min
Scott Shepherd sits down with floral designer and grower Lindsey Mizock of Pompelmo Floral to talk about creativity, freelancing, and what it means to intentionally keep your business small. Lindsey shares insights from her years working on small farms along the California coast, her fine-art background, and her approach to design rooted in observation and authenticity. Together, they explore favorite flower varieties, the freedom of freelancing, and how staying small can create space for deeper…
The Science and Art of Plant Breeding with Dr. Keith Hammett
Ep 301 · Oct 30, 2025 · 1 hr 12 min
This week, Scott explores the intersection of science and artistry in the world of flower breeding. Dr. Keith Hammett, New Zealand's leading ornamental plant breeder, shares his passion for developing Dahlias, Sweet Peas, and Clivias that blend genetics, color, and creativity. Together, they discuss the delicate balance between science and art, the importance of scent in breeding, the joy of discovery, and how breeders quietly shape the world of floristry through their vision and dedication. Thi…
Starting Fresh with Galena Berkompas, Micro Flower Farm
Ep 300 · Oct 16, 2025 · 1 hr 8 min
Starting Fresh with Galena Berkompas Building a new flower farm from the ground up! In this episode, returning guest Galena Berkompas of Micro Flower Farm shares what it's like to start over on a new piece of land in Vancouver, Washington. She talks about prioritizing perennials, choosing cover crops, and balancing short-term crops with long-term investments. Galena also dives into her watering schedule, dahlia care, and the lessons she's learning as she rebuilds her micro farm from the ground u…
What Is Your Most Important Tool: Madeline Hooper of Gardenfit
Oct 2, 2025 · 1 hr 5 min
What Is Your Most Important Tool? Madeline Hooper has such a great story. After years in public relations, competing as a ballroom dancer, and teacher she turned her focus to gardening and helping others. Together with her husband, she's spent over three decades creating and caring for their Rockland Farm in New York. She's also the co-creator of the TV series GardenFit, and she shares down-to-earth ways we can take care of our most important tool—our own body. Whether you're planting, weeding,…
Planning for Profit with Jenny Marks, Trademarks Flower Farm
Ep 298 · Sep 18, 2025 · 1 hr 3 min
My guest today is Jenny Marks from Clifton Springs New York, a grower and educator who has built her business from the ground up. Jenny runs Trademarks Flower Farm, a productive one-acre farm celebrated for its gorgeous early spring blooms and smart, efficient growing practices. Alongside her own farm work, she created Trademark Farmer, where she teaches and mentors small-scale flower farmers who want to build profitable, sustainable businesses of their own. Jenny is also the voice behind the Si…
Fleurs de Villes: Celebrating Floral Artistry and Opportunity with Tina Barkley
Ep 297 · Sep 4, 2025 · 50 min
In this episode of The Flower Podcast, Scott is joined by Tina Barkley, co-founder of Fleurs de Villes. With more than 25 years in creative industries, Tina has built a career around bringing beauty, entrepreneurship, and storytelling together. She shares how floral artistry can go beyond decoration — becoming a way to tell stories, engage communities, and open new opportunities for your business. From saying "no" as a chance to pivot, to embracing perseverance and creativity, Tina encourages fl…
Seed Talk: Planning, Planting, and Cool Flowers at The Gardener's Workshop with Layne Angelo and Lisa Mason Ziegler
Ep 296 · Aug 21, 2025 · 1 hr 19 min
On this episode of The Flower Podcast, I'm joined by Layne Angelo, Seed Director at The Gardener's Workshop and co-host of Seed Talk with Lisa & Layne, alongside Lisa Mason Ziegler — gardener, flower farmer, educator, author, and founder of The Gardener's Workshop. Lisa has been a guest before, and it was wonderful to welcome her back and to also chat with Layne for the first time. Their podcast, Seed Talk, is a true treasure trove of information, offering growers practical guidance and insight…
Weekly Blooms, Steady Profits, with Franceska McCaughan, The Hotel Florist®
Ep 295 · Aug 7, 2025 · 1 hr 3 min
In this episode of The Flower Podcast, host Scott Shepherd sits down with Franceska McCaughan, The Hotel Florist, to explore how florists can grow their businesses with weekly floral accounts. Franceska shares her journey from experimenting with flower bars to building a thriving business serving hotels, restaurants, and professional spaces. She explains why embracing trial and error, thinking profit-first, and creating memorable client experiences can transform your floral business. You'll lear…
The Seeds We Save, The Blooms We Shape: Inside Dawn Creek Farm
Ep 294 · Jul 10, 2025 · 1 hr 13 min
This week, Scott sits down with Kori Hargreaves, the heart and hands behind Dawn Creek Farm, for a conversation rooted in seeds, selection, and the creative process of flower breeding. Kori shares insights from her decade-long journey developing new open-pollinated varieties—including her collaboration with Floret. They explore the practical side of breeding—avoiding inbreeding depression, selecting for color and form, and choosing varieties that fit your market—and the deeper reasons behind sav…
Floristry with Heart and Purpose: Carole Patilla of Tuckshop Flowers and The Farewell Flowers Directory
Ep 293 · Jun 26, 2025 · 1 hr 20 min
In this episode of The Flower Podcast, Scott Shepherd talks with Carole Patilla of Tuckshop Flowers and co-founder of The Farewell Flowers Directory. They explore the growing movement toward sustainable and foam-free funeral flowers. Carole shares practical tips for florists ready to shift away from floral foam, embrace compostable design, and rethink traditional funeral floristry. This inspiring conversation is all about starting small, building confidence, and making meaningful change in your…
Authenticity: The Florist's Path to Confidence, Clarity, and Community with Elizabeth Hodges, Philo Floral
Ep 292 · Jun 12, 2025 · 1 hr 4 min
In this episode of The Flower Podcast, Elizabeth Hodges, owner of Philo Floral in Greenville SC., opens up about the powerful mindset shift that helped her build a business rooted in authenticity. We explore how understanding generational values—from Gen Z's focus on connection and transparency to older generations' appreciation for experience—can change the way you approach wedding consultations and client relationships. Elizabeth also shares her thoughts on taking ownership of your growth, let…
Building Your Best Farm: Adrianne Gammie of Marilla Field and Flora
Ep 291 · May 29, 2025 · 1 hr 8 min
In this episode, we welcome back Adrianne Gammie, a dedicated flower farmer known for her intentional approach to business, sustainability, and community impact. Adrianne shares valuable insights from her evolving farm, covering everything from pollinator habitat and land stewardship to profitability and professional relationships. Her candid advice is grounded in real-world experience and offers practical strategies for flower farmers at any stage. Topics Covered: -How diversification helps man…
Standards in Cut Flower Production: Diane Szukovathy of Jello Mold Farm
Ep 290 · May 15, 2025 · 1 hr 13 min
Flowers are at the heart of so many meaningful moments—especially since Mother's Day week just happened. This episode honors the hardworking farmers, florists, designers, and behind-the-scenes teams who make it all possible. Returning guest Diane Szukovathy of Jello Mold Farm joins Scott for a rich conversation about long-term farm planning, infrastructure investment, and the evolving role of a flower grower. As a founding member of the Seattle Wholesale Growers Market, Diane also shares the sto…
Being the Face of Your Farm: Nicole Pitt, Flower Hill Farm
Ep 289 · Apr 24, 2025 · 1 hr 7 min
We're chatting with Nicole Pitt, the passionate owner of Flower Hill Farm, and a popular YouTube creator, as she shares her journey in the world of flower farming. Nicole's story is all about planting roots, both literally and figuratively, as she returned to her childhood home in 2018 and transformed it into a thriving farm full of flowers. Some of the topics we discussed: Perennials as a Foundation: Nicole emphasizes that perennials, though slower to establish, are long-term investments that f…
Design, Relationships, and Giving Back: Pili Fuentes's Floral Story
Ep 288 · Apr 10, 2025 · 59 min
This week's episode highlights the importance of continual growth and learning in the floral industry. Our guest, Pili, exemplifies this by consistently investing in her skills through workshops and collaborations with leading designers. She emphasizes the need for exploring new trends and refining techniques to perfect one's craft. A key theme in the conversation is Pili's ability to identify issues and opportunities, then rallying the community to fill those gaps. We dive into the flower marke…
Streamlining and Growing Your Flower Business with Niki Irving
Ep 287 · Mar 27, 2025 · 1 hr 7 min
This week on The Flower Podcast our guest is Niki Irving, the owner and florist behind Flourish Flower Farm in Asheville, NC, where she grows a wide variety of flowers and foliage using sustainable methods. She creates beautiful, seasonal arrangements for weddings and events, leads classes and workshops on the farm, and offers fresh bouquets at her farmstand. Niki is also the author of the popular book Growing Flowers: Everything You Need to Know About Planting, Tending, Harvesting, and Arrangin…
Using Rooted Farmers to Track Trends, Sales, and More: A Database Goldmine
Ep 286 · Mar 13, 2025 · 1 hr 8 min
Numbers are our friends! Digging deep into the data generated through the growing and selling of our flowers is an important part of creating a more sustainable business. This week, we're chatting with Adrianne Gammie, owner of Marilla Field and Flora, along with Amelia Ihlo, founder of Rooted Farmers. We'll take the time to meet Adrianne and discuss with Amelia how to analyze data from 2024 to evaluate the flower crops grown by both of these growers, as well as analyze the data collected by Roo…
Flowering Without Fear: The Florista, Meg Hutchinson
Ep 285 · Feb 27, 2025 · 1 hr 9 min
Today's guest is Meg Hutchinson, owner of The Florista, a floral and event business based in Nashville, TN. Meg is known for specializing and creating custom floral designs, bringing her client's vision to life. Her focus is delivering the "Wow Factor" through bespoke floral experiences that exceed expectations. In this episode we had a great time discussing several aspects of Meg's business. Never underestimate the importance in investing in yourself and mastering basic mechanics. Don't be afra…
Christmas Special: Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol" 2025
Ep 284 · Dec 23, 2024 · 30 min
Hello everyone! This is a special episode of The Flower Podcast. This year we're continuing a tradition that started last year with sharing something from our family's archives. My Dad for many years has collected a wide range of old time radio shows. His collection is made up of over 30,000 different shows and of course there are several Christmas specials. So we're excited to reshare this condensed version of Charles Dickens Classic, "A Christmas Carol" again this year. The book was originally…
Selling to a Wholesaler: No Till Flowers with Scott Shepherd
Ep 283 · Dec 17, 2024 · 1 hr 3 min
I'm excited to share this week's episode with you! Earlier this year Jenny Love, flower farmer expert and host of the No Till Flowers podcast, asked me to be a guest on her podcast to chat about working with wholesalers as a local flower farmer. Jenny asked great questions and we had a great conversation that I hope you find helpful. Hopefully through conversation like this we can continue to grow the local flower share of our industry and bring more of the flower production to our own communiti…
Bailey's Back: Flowers, Trends, and the Garden Club Plants Launch at Farmer Bailey
Ep 282 · Dec 10, 2024 · 1 hr 1 min
This week, we're catching up with Bailey Hale to dive into all the exciting developments happening at Farmer Bailey. So much has unfolded over the past two years that we had to bring Bailey back on the podcast to get the inside scoop. We'll hear about his recent tour to the Netherlands, the latest trends in cut flower plants, and their brand-new program, Garden Club Plants, launching this week. As a floral designer, flower farmer, and plant distributor, Bailey's expertise is unmatched. It's alwa…
Finding Your MVP with Ashley Fox of Ashley Fox Designs
Ep 281 · Dec 3, 2024 · 1 hr 7 min
This week, I'm joined by Ashley Fox, the creative force behind Ashley Fox Designs, a full-service floral studio in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Specializing in stunning floral arrangements for weddings, events, and editorial projects, Ashley is celebrated for her unique use of color and exceptional flower choices, drawing inspiration from the beauty of nature. With 25 years of experience and a background in horticulture and the arts, she carefully selects the finest local blooms alongside excl…
Finding the Gaps in Your Flower Market with Eleanor Lonardo / The Borrowed Garden
Ep 280 · Nov 26, 2024 · 1 hr 15 min
Our guest this week is Eleanor Lonardo and her business is called The Borrowed Garden located in Crockett, California. Eleanor's is a small scale flower farmer that sells to florists in the East Bay/San Francisco area. It's great to hear about her experiences as she began growing, the benefits of taking floral design workshops as a grower, the importance of photography, and so much more. There are several specialty crops that we explore, and it's great to hear the pros and cons of these truly sp…
Sarah Winward: Creating Weddings That Reflect Nature
Ep 279 · Nov 19, 2024 · 1 hr 14 min
Sarah Winward is a floral artist and event designer based in Salt Lake City, Utah, specializing in destination weddings. Her work, known for its seasonal, nature-inspired designs, has been featured in The New York Times Magazine, Martha Stewart, and she has been named a top florist by Vogue. Sarah's floral arrangements evoke the beauty of nature, often sourced locally or foraged near event locations to seamlessly integrate with the surroundings. Passionate about flowers, Sarah collaborates close…
Looking Back and Moving Forward in Flower Farming with Lisa Mason Ziegler of The Gardener's Workshop
Ep 278 · Nov 5, 2024 · 1 hr 3 min
Lisa Mason Ziegler, cut-flower farmer, author, educator and founder of The Gardener's Workshop is returning to The Flower Podcast. Since 1998, she has cultivated her three-acre urban farm in Southeastern Virginia, producing thousands of flower stems weekly for florists, supermarkets, farmer's markets, and her members-only on-farm market. Lisa has authored several books, including Cool Flowers, and she is the creator of Flower Farming School Online, which has expanded to include courses for both…
Selling to Florists with Sarah Jo Eversole of Everbloom Fields
Ep 277 · Oct 22, 2024 · 1 hr 7 min
My guest this week is Sarah Jo Eversole, owner of Everbloom Fields in Lancaster, TX. It might be a micro flower farm, but she produces not only exceptional quality blooms but high volume as well. She shares many of her experiences as a grower especially decisions on what to grow to be more profitable. There's a wealth of growing and business tips in this episode, and it's our hope that you're inspired and encouraged that no matter the size of your business, it's yours and has every opportunity t…
Mindshift: Serving Not Selling with Charlotte Smith
Ep 276 · Oct 15, 2024 · 1 hr 3 min
I'm excited to share that Charlotte Smith is our guest again on The Flower Podcast. Charlotte teaches farmers the skills they need to make money on their farms and live calm, balanced lives through mindset coaching. Going against what most of us have been taught, Charlotte coaches in 13 countries to build successful profitable farms while also getting out from feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and anxious. In 2016, Charlotte was named one of the Top 25 Most Influential Women in the World in Food an…
Replay: Growing Dahlias with Kristine Albrecht of Santa Cruz Dahlias
Ep 275 · Oct 8, 2024 · 1 hr 10 min
Ready to talk Dahlias? This week my guest is Kristine Albrecht of Santa Cruz Dahlias. Known for her award winning dahlia hybrids and her book, Dahlia Breeding for the farmer florist and the home gardener, Kristine is sharing her flower journey along with numerous tips and insights on her hybridizing process, cover crops, soil testing and more. She is the president of the Monterey Bay Dahlia Society and travels with her blooms to local and national dahlia shows and today we get to step into the w…
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